John McCusker/The Times-Picayune'Rickey was so versatile. You couldn't block him,' ex-49ers running back Roger Craig said of Rickey Jackson, who was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday.
Linebacker Rickey Jackson, for 13 years the heart and soul of a feared defense that helped establish the team as playoff contenders in the late 1980s and early 1990s, was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, becoming the first player who spent the bulk of his career with the Saints to be so honored.

Jackson, who along with the rest of the enshrinement class is scheduled to toss the coin at Super Bowl XLIV tonight, retired in 1995 with 128 sacks, which was third all-time at that juncture and still ranks second in NFL history with 28 recovered fumbles and fourth all-time with 41 forced fumbles.

"You just don't know . ... I'm very happy, " Jackson said by phone Saturday night as he was traveling here for today's game between the Saints and Indianapolis Colts. "It means everything to me.

"It means that you're one of the best in the world. And I proved that I was one of the best in the world."

Jackson's enshrinement, scheduled for Aug. 7 in Canton, Ohio, means he will join three other individuals with ties to the Saints in the Hall of Fame: executive Jim Finks, defensive end Doug Atkins, who played three years in New Orleans after the bulk of his career with the Chicago Bears, and Jim Taylor, who played for one season with the Saints after starring for the Green Bay Packers.

Jackson's selection was the surprise of Saturday's vote, which, as expected, included San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Jerry Rice, the NFL's all-time leading receiver, and Dallas Cowboys' running back Emmitt Smith, the league's all-time rushing leader.

Also chosen for enshrinement among the 15 modern-era finalists were Washington Redskins guard Russ Grimm and Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle John Randle.

Old-timers candidates Dick LeBeau, a cornerback with the Detroit Lions, and running back Floyd Little of the Denver Broncos were also picked by the 44-person Hall of Fame selection committee that spent nearly seven hours debating the merits of the 17 total finalists.

The Times-Picayune archiveRickey Jackson was the leader of the feared Dome Patrol.
"I can't tell you how excited I am that Rickey Jackson is in the Hall of Fame, " said former Niners quarterback Steve Young, a Hall of Famer who played two seasons with Jackson in San Francisco, where they won Super Bowl XXIX against the San Diego Chargers. "He was only briefly with me, but one of my favorite teammates of all time.

"And I knew why he had such a huge impact in New Orleans and why he still does today. He represents a whole group of people, of phenomenal athletes who came through New Orleans without recognition. So he represents not just himself, but a lot who've fought through the Saints in their history.

"And isn't it interesting that it's this week when the Saints are in the Super Bowl? It's kind of a phenomenal story."

Former San Francisco fullback Roger Craig, who was one of the day's finalists who did not make it, said Jackson and his fellow Dome Patrol linebackers ­-- the late Sam Mills, Vaughan Johnson and Pat Swilling -- made for some fitful nights of sleep on those two annual occasions when the Saints and Niners, then in the NFC West, would meet.

"Those four guys were the most dominant linebackers ever to play the game, " Craig said. "I'm so happy they're getting their just due. The other three need to follow Rickey now. They deserve to be there.

"But Rickey was so versatile. You couldn't block him. He could speed-rush you. He was smart. A cagey kind of guy who made it happen. I'm glad he's getting his just due. I've talked about for the last 15 years how special their linebackers were, and their defense. Their defense was one of the top defenses in the game for a decade. Had they had an offense, had Drew Brees, they would have won four or five Super Bowls in the '80s with that defense they had."

A second-round draft choice of the Saints out of Pittsburgh in 1981, Jackson entered the league no more than 220 pounds, but diligently bulked up to 245 by the end of his career. As he got larger, however, his speed remained the same, making him a fearsome pass rusher who when rushing from the left side of the defense, would usually be coming from the quarterback's exposed flank, not the blind side.

He nonetheless accumulated impressive sack totals. And in the dawn of situational defense, when coaches often substituted players to exploit matchups either against the run or pass, Jackson played every down, equally adept at pass coverage of running backs or tight ends as he was in run defense.

Jackson played on all of the Saints' special teams as well.

"When they played in the Dome, with that noise, with Rickey and Pat, I almost called the commissioner and told him it wasn't fair, " Young said. "They were standing 5 feet from you for 60 minutes.

"Rickey had two things: he had a move off the corner to get to the quarterback, or he could run over the tackle to get the quarterback. And he could also drop back into coverage. He had it all.

"And even at the end of his career when he was with us, a very effective football player. You know what? There's a part of me that says Rickey could have played quarterback. That's how good an athlete he was. He was one of those athletes that he could have done anything.

"Playing against the Saints all those years, " Young went on, "we won a lot of games, but we paid for it. That's why my heart is with the Saints this week. Because I know what they've been through, all the great players they've had, and Rickey Jackson represents that greatness."

Jimmy Smith can be reached at jsmith@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3814.